A hybrid UAV set a new flight-time record by staying aloft for how long?

On Christmas Eve in Valencia, Spain, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with a hybrid power system remained aloft for four hours and 40 minutes. According to Quaternium, the company that developed the drone, this is the longest recorded flight time for a self-powered UAV.

Quaternium’s HYBRiX.20 is powered by a gasoline-electric hybrid configuration, allowing it to fly much farther and longer than an all-electric drone. While useful for breaking records, the boost in drone performance provided by this configuration could also have many practical benefits. It could make drones much more reliable and useful in surveillance initiatives and disaster scenarios.